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Religion
Though there are optional faith systems in PACT, there are no deities. There are two sets of faith systems: national, and racial. Some may contradict each other, and it is down to you to decide what you character believes in, if anything. Many of the beliefs are more akin to superstitions. Feel free to create you own, so long as it fits within the setting and does not contain gods. If in doubt, email pactlarp@outlook.com or ask on one of the facebook groups. Any similarities to existing major religions are accidental. If you believe something too similarly matches a real life religion, please let us know. National Beliefs Panea Tithos Akronia Cirrus Racial Beliefs Humans Many humans believe purely in the practical nature of the world, but there are some who believe their ancestors fell from the stars, and that is where all people return to when they die. As a whole, the race has a fascination with the unobtainable, leading to interest in the deep sea and the sky. Once every year, there is a Festival of the Stars held in cities and towns, where for one night, all artificial lights and fires are doused and replaced by pinprick lights, so that the yearly meteor shower can be observed in all its glory. Shops will open after hours to supply food, and many entertainers take to the streets. Dwarves There is currently no faith system written up for dwarves. If you would like to develop something, let us know! Halfums The halfums have many tales about forests uprooting and walking off, and paths changing so much that only the best rangers can find their way from one place to the next. It is said that the trees know who is pure of heart and who means to cause harm, and will constantly move to trap evildoers in a maze of foliage until they die. More positive tales include small guiding lights to guide the way for good travellers, as what the forest deems to be evil could be very different to what the halfums think. These lights, however helpful, are very fickle, and are quick to anger if wronged, so should be treated with respect if a traveller does ever find one. Constructs There is currently no faith system written up for constructs, due to them usually following the same faith they had before they were turned. If you would like to develop something, let us know! Orcs There is currently no faith system written up for orcs. If you would like to develop something, let us know! Goblins There is currently no faith system written up for goblins. If you would like to develop something, let us know! Kobold There is currently no faith system written up for kobold. If you would like to develop something, let us know! Torlan The Torlan are not particularly superstitious, but they do have a communal belief that if they stray too far from their territories while hunting or exploring, guiding lights will show them to back to safety. Whether these lights are magical in nature or simply some strange minute creature has not been confirmed, as no-one has dared tried capturing one for study for fear they will stop aiding the Torlan. As some Torlan are rather deep sea faring creatures, stories of slumbering monsters in the abyssal caverns are common, and apparent sightings are frequently ignored due to being far enough away from the safe colonies to be any trouble. Elves lves have a deep rooted mistrust of pure magical beings, refusing to believe that such creatures could lead to anything other than trouble. Elemental beings and mana lights are treated as bad omens, thing not to be trusted. Within their own ranks, there is a stigma against elves who choose to pursue the expansion of magical knowledge, and indeed, purely magical elves themselves, believing that those too dependant on magic are more easily manipulated by the sprites in their elder’s stories. The most common myth the elves share, aside from that of the magical sprites leading people astray, is that of the whispers in the dark. Each story has a different non-magical source for the whispers, if the source is mentioned at all, but it is commonly believed by the elves that they are the closest to nature, and as such, nature will aid them in times of trouble, suggesting solutions to their troubles if they are dire, and telling them the way back to the path if they become lost. Gnomes From a young age, cautionary tales are shared, teaching the basics of life and what to avoid. They are taught that no-one is purely bad, and that those who are deemed bad should never be killed, for then they cannot learn and be good again. By their mid teens, they are introduced to the Mask. The Mask is a cultural item that all gnomes receive from the leader of their community once they have learnt the basics of life. Since they had no foe on Akronia, they had no-one to test them. The Mask represents the concept of the Villain, the evil doer, the one who is not purely bad but is a challenge to overcome. All gnomes aim to fulfil all aspects of stories in their lifetime, and the Villain cannot be overlooked. Whilst wearing the Mask, the gnome agrees to take on this role, to set riddles and tasks and challenges, to fight but not to kill, to damage but not to break. No gnome will kill another wearing a mask, for they understand that this role is vital, and they are performing it to help the entire community. Ykrietes It should not be a surprise that the Ykrietes are one of, if not the most magically powerful and potent races, and their belief system reflects this. Their instinctual link to magic has caused them to put faith in a living, breathing stream of magic, which they claim covers the entire planet, just under the surface. Their settlements in the cavernous expanses under the desert floor all have mana wells, points of concentrated mana which were only recently discovered to have been created by scattering mana crystal dust. These are treated as links to the mana stream, and are where mana is usually drawn from for spell weavings of creation.